All in Video
Our clothing makes a statement. It tells the world who we are at any given moment and allows for a sense of expression that words cannot convey. Newark has a storied history within the fashion world and the Newark Museum of Art is honoring that history with their latest exhibition, "The Story of Newark Fashion: Atelier to Runway."
“Pilobolus is a rebellious dance company. Since 1971, Pilobolus has tested the limits of human physicality to explore the beauty and the power of connected bodies. We continue to bring this tradition to global audiences through our post-disciplinary collaborations with some of the greatest influencers, thinkers, and creators in the world.”
No one writes songs about relationships quite like Stephen Sondheim, and A Little Night Music, now being performed by American Theater Group at Hamilton Stage, is no exception.
Alonzo Adams has been using his paintings to tell stories of the contemporary Black experience for over 25 years. In his first solo museum exhibition at Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University, his own story as an artist is being told, from his very first painting to pieces that have not been seen publicly for years. We went to New Brunswick to speak with the artist about putting this exhibition together, and how it feels to return to Rutgers, where he once studied. “Alonzo Adams: A Griot’s Vision” is on display through February 25.
New Year, New Fortunes! Once again the lunar New Year is upon us, with those celebrating ushering out the old year and bringing forth a year of prosperity and good fortune. The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company honors this tradition annually at the NJPAC with a cross-cultural, immersive dance performance.
"Black Nativity", a gospel song play inspired by the Gospel of Luke and with a book written by Langston Hughes, first premiered on Broadway in 1961. It has since been performed all over the world as a joyful, musical celebration of the Nativity story. Dunbar Repertory Company will bring its vision of this timeless classic to the Count Basie Center for the Arts this December 30th.
The Hip Hop Nutcracker translates Tchaikovsky's beloved ballet music into an incredible holiday story told through hip hop dance. Director and Choreographer Jennifer Weber—who is also the Tony-nominated choreographer behind Broadway’s & Juliet and KPOP—brought the idea to life 10 years ago in partnership with NJPAC. Now, a decade of touring and two films later, The Hip Hop Nutcracker has become a tradition of its own and returns to NJPAC on December 23rd. Jennifer Weber talks with Jersey Arts about break dancing, ballet, and the show's famous fan: Mikhail Baryshnikov.
"Tracy Jones" is a touching comedy of individual connection in an increasingly busy world. And the play will mark the first fully staged production in Arthouse Production's new space.
The play's synopsis reads: "The main character, Tracy Jones, rents out the back "party room" of Jones Street Bar and Grill: The Place for Wings and Things to throw a party to which she's invited every woman in the area who is also named Tracy Jones. Tracy sits for over an hour alone, nursing her Diet Coke, waiting for any other Tracy Joneses to show up, and help alleviate her epic loneliness. Through her encounters with the limited guests that attend, this hilarious play challenges the audience to question loneliness, connection, and why we do the things we do."
Jersey Arts speaks to director, Alex Tobey and writer, Stephen Kaplan about bringing this show to life.
Music, humor and clairvoyance are soon to thrill audiences at McCarter Theatre Center in the form of Eisa Davis' Pulitzer Prize finalist play, “Bulrusher.” A period piece set in 1950s California, “Bulrusher” is the coming-of-age tale of a multiracial young woman bestowed with the gift of clairvoyance as she navigates life in her mostly white town. More than a fish out of water story, Bulrusher highlights the beauty, complexity and compassion that make life the nuanced ride that it is.
Jersey Arts speaks with Director Nicole A. Watson and the cast of McCarter’s “Bulrusher” to learn more about this vibrant story.
Step back in time to 1930s New York. McCarter Theatre’s production of “Blues for an Alabama Sky” tells the story of a youthful group of friends facing a crossroads at the end of the Harlem Renaissance and the beginning of the Great Depression. Jersey Arts TV goes to rehearsals in Princeton to find out more about this American drama.
A rehabilitation camp for disaffected teens, a haunted wood plagued by lost souls, and a path to redemption for all — this is but a taste of the upcoming musical “Clean Slate.”
A co-production from Passage Theatre and Rider University, the musical will mark its world premiere in the Garden State.
A story of radical empathy, the piece explores the need to remember who we used to be in order to move forward.
Jersey Arts visits Rider University to speak to the creative team behind “Clean Slate,” which will run its encore performance at the Mill Hill Playhouse in Trenton March 10-12.
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
And then run?
These words from the poetry of Langston Hughes served as the inspiration for the play “A Raisin in the Sun” and later its Tony Award-winning musical reimagining, “Raisin.”
Focused on the dreams and desires of a struggling Black family in 1950s Chicago, “Raisin” celebrates the persistence and resolve of a family at a crossroads.
Jersey Arts visits the Axelrod Performing Arts Center to speak with the creative team behind the show and learn more about its 50th Anniversary performance of “Raisin,” on stage Feb. 24 - March 12.
PEAK Performances, together with Ballet Collective Inc., will present the world premiere of The Night Falls, a dance-driven music theater production, in the Alexander Kasser Theater at Montclair State University Feb. 9-12.
A hauntingly unique work of art, the production melds mediums into a symphonic commentary on grief, despair, and resistance. Seeking to encourage audiences to live life to the fullest, the piece thrives on its desire to see beauty through difficulty.
Jersey Arts visits The Night Falls' dance company and creative team during a rehearsal at Alvin Ailey studios in NYC to learn more about this novel production.
What happens when life imitates art too literally? Lots of drama. Two River Theater is presenting the world debut of “Living & Breathing,” a world premiere play by Mando Alvarado. This new play examines the world of high art, racial identity, and a friend group that’s ready to buckle. Jersey Arts goes to rehearsal in Red Bank to learn more from the team behind this new show.
George Street Playhouse is debuting the new musical “Joy” about the life of inventor and entrepreneur Joy Mangano.
As the inventor of the Miracle Mop, the best-selling self-wringing mop from the ‘90s, Mangano launched a mammoth cleaning product empire on QVC and Home Shopping Network, became an inspiration to women across the country, and was portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence on film. The uplifting new musical is the next benchmark in her remarkable life.
Jersey Arts TV goes to the rehearsal room in New York City to find out more about this new show.
Under the direction of new Artistic Director Maria Kowroski, the New Jersey Ballet will present their latest production, "New Direction," at the Mayo Performing Arts Center (MPAC) on Nov. 19. The 2022-2023 season is the NJ Ballet's first as the resident ballet company of the MPAC.
"New Direction" will feature three unique pieces — "Hallelujah Junction," "World Premiere" and "Who Cares." The three pieces will feature the choreography of Peter Martins, Harrison Ball and George Balanchine. A special treat, Harrison Ball's piece will showcase costumes designed by fashion designer Zac Posen.
Correspondent Gina Marie Rodriguez speaks with Artistic Director Maria Kowroski and company dancers Denise Parungau, Ilse Kapteyn and Jonatan Lujan about the joy of dance.
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey presents two one-act plays, “Florence” and “Mojo: A Black Love Story,” by Alice Childress Oct. 26 to Nov. 13 at the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre in Madison, New Jersey.
Childress (1916-1994) was an actress and a founding member of the American Negro Theatre in 1940 before becoming a groundbreaking playwright. She is often acknowledged as the only 20th-century African-American woman to have written, produced and published plays for four decades.
The Theatre has a mission to integrate education and learning into its endeavors to promote a culture of enlightenment.
“Florence,” written in 1949, explores the issues of female empowerment, interracial politics and working-class life. “Mojo: A Black Love Story,” written 1970, captures the love between a man and a woman once married yet still deeply committed to each other.
Correspondent Gina Marie Rodriguez speaks with Director Lindsey Smiling, “Mojo” actress Darlene Hope and costume designer Patrice Trower about what Childress' work means to them and the theater community.
A story about a mother and her daughters, split by cultures. In “Her Portmanteau,” a George Street Playhouse production on stage at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center Oct. 11 — 30, we follow a Nigerian-American family trying to reunite amid the stark differences of lifestyles and values when relatives are spread across continents.
Correspondent Jesse North is at rehearsal in New Brunswick to talk with the creatives bringing this family to life on stage.
The world-renowned disability arts ensemble Kinetic Light will perform “Descent” at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, sponsored by the Dance Department at Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts.
Kinetic Light’s work is created, designed and performed by disabled artists. The ensemble’s mission is to emphasize that disability is not a hindrance but rather a "powerful, intersectional creative force."
The Dance Department in Mason Gross has newly minted an Integrated Dance Collaboratory (IDC), "a hub of interdisciplinary research exploring dance’s unique rehabilitative potential for individuals with a wide range of physical and mental health conditions,” explains Jason Geary, Dean, Mason Gross School of the Arts.
Jeff Friedman, professor of Dance at Mason Gross and director of the IDC says, "We have already been benefiting from Kinetic Light’s support on multiple fronts to offer accessible performances at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center.”
Correspondent Gina Marie Rodriguez speaks with Kinetic Light Founder Alice Sheppard; Dancer, Choreographic Collaborator and Engineer Laurel Lawson; and Scenographer Michael Maag, as well as Rutger’s Jeff Friedman, and gives us a glimpse of the choreography of “Descent.”
American Repertory Ballet is launching its 2022-23 season with “Kaleidoscope,” a program featuring four unique dance performances, at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. One performance joins ballet with an original music composition, blending contemporary dance with an eclectic score for piano and cello.
Correspondent Jesse North speaks with the creators behind this piece.
